Police search home, find no one inside after standoff in Lebanon

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Photo from the scene on SR 39

Photo from the scene on SR 39

Photo from the scene on SR 39

LEBANON, Ind. – Police searched a home where they believed a man had barricaded himself inside and didn’t find anyone.

Police said earlier Friday that an armed man was inside the residence after a car sale went wrong. Police were called to the home just north of Lebanon in the 6100 block of SR 39 shortly before 6:30 a.m.

When sheriff’s deputies arrived, the owner of the home said he had picked up two men and drove them to another house to sell a vehicle to them. The sale didn’t happen and he reported he was robbed at gunpoint, but managed to escape.

He told police he went back to Lebanon and saw someone in his bedroom wearing a mask and sunglasses, and holding a shotgun. The man stated his 14-year-old daughter was also inside.

However, when police searched the home, they didn’t find anyone inside. The Boone County Sheriff’s Office says there’s no evidence that an intruder was ever in the home, and there was no threat to family members.

“We are fortunate that the outcome of this particular incident was one where no one was hurt. It is unfortunate that this incident either did not occur or there is much more to the story than we are being told,” said Sheriff Michael Nielsen. “Our public safety personnel respond to every call in an emergent status and it puts these officers in harm’s way. We take every call seriously and our investigators will get to the bottom of this call in due time. When we do, we will hold that person(s) responsible for their actions.”